New Orleans

A couple of months ago I had the chance to go to New Orleans for a conference. I fell in love with the city. I really, really fell in love with the food. And my hotel gym.

There were a couple of fun (and humorous) highlights from the trip that I enjoyed.

1. We stayed at the Hyatt Regency New Orleans. I fell in love with the gym, but would only work out at night because the dome was lit up and changed colors. The panoramic views of the city were way more inspiring that late at night with the city all lit up. I made it a habit to hit the gym nightly.

(Image courtesy of Trip Advisor)

2. Finding Gluten Free beignets was a joke. It was a joke to most of the people who live and work in New Orleans because apparently there is NOTHING gluten free in the town except salads. While sad I couldn't eat an entire one, I opted to try a bite of two of New Orleans favorites: beignets at Cafe Beignet and pralines. So good!! The stomachache was not so good afterward.

Image courtesy of NewOrleans.com

3. The buildings were amazing! Everytime we went out walking I just took pictures of all the pretty buildings. Now I'm sharing them with you. If you ever have a chance to get out there, don't forget your good camera at home.

4. My two favorite activities as a first timer had to be the alligator tour and the World War II museum. We spent half a day at the WWII museum and several hours on the alligator tour. Both were worth the time and money. I would recommend the small boat on the alligator tour and the narrated Tom Hanks movie at the WWII museum.

PS: I want one. CHRISTMAS HINT!!

5. Of course, I DID have to work a little bit. I got to present for one session at the conference I attended. Being alone in the city wasn't a problem either. I loved this travel guide I found. Being a single female in the city, I was warned from  a lot of people including hotel staff to not be out alone after dark. I usually opted to be in as the sun went down except for the one day that I got caught in a downpour and swam ankle and calf deep back to my hotel from the grocery store (the streets flood SO fast!). The worst was the nasty rat that swam across my path. And the dirty look I got from the workers as I walked back into the hotel dripping from head to toe. One of the things I found a little tough was the far proximity the hotel was from a lot of the nightlife. It did force me to be in earlier whereas I might have dropped in to some of the more touristy spots a little later in the day. I felt like a lot of my outings had to be condensed into the several hours of breaks I had during the day. I hope to go back one day to explore some more. My mouth still waters when I think of the food!